I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

"If one had such a sharp vision, perhaps one would not have gone astray."

The mysterious girl sighed softly, and her mermaid-like shell gradually cracked and shattered with a rustling sound.

"Here... you may call me 'Athena' for now."

"I shouldn't exist here, but I came here for various reasons..."

'Similar to the black-clad figure from the Hall of Abydos and Saintia from the Hall of Holy Trinity, she temporarily descended here through some special channel, cloaked in the shadow that originally existed within this hall…'

The information gathered by the third eye remains unchanged.

The one shrouded in the shadow of 'Athena' is indeed Hikaru Shiranui.

However... this Shiranui Hanaya is different from the Shiranui Hanaya that Amamiya knew.

The marks on her body reminded Amamiya of the changes that occurred after Beatrice donned the crown of thorns.

—Perhaps we can temporarily call it 'colorization'?

"Oh……"

Amamiya gripped the edge of the mask and asked calmly, "Why did you come here? Is there any special purpose?"

Athena calmly replied, "To atone for the mistakes I have made."

"..."

She paused, then continued, "And, make the necessary 'sacrifices' for it."

It's getting more and more unpredictable...

What can be confirmed at present is that the 'Shiranui Hanaya' in front of us did indeed temporarily descend here from another playthrough through some means.

And her goal... should be to help him conquer the Hall of Flower Glory?

When introducing herself, she said the name of the goddess 'Athena'.

She is the goddess of war and wisdom, and one of the three goddesses in Greek mythology who remained chaste.

Athena is widely regarded as the 'patron goddess of Athens'.

The related legends are associated with the sea god Poseidon.

According to legend, Poseidon and Athena competed for the honor of naming Athens, and held a contest in which the one who provided the most useful thing to mankind would become the city's patron goddess.

Poseidon summoned a warhorse with his trident. Athena, on the other hand, conjured an olive tree, a symbol of peace and prosperity.

Warhorses symbolized endless war and sorrow, something that the vast majority of Athenian residents did not revere.

The inhabitants of Athens chose Athena's olive tree, and thus Athens was named after the goddess Athena.

Thus, on this bountiful land protected by the goddess, one of the most famous buildings that still stands today was restored.

—The Parthenon.

In mythology, the relationship between Athena and Poseidon is mostly one of competition, or even hostility.

After all, Athena symbolizes wisdom and civilization, while Poseidon symbolizes the hegemony of power and the savage forces of nature.

Reflected in the hall, if Huaye's inner desire for the power of the Federation Student Council President is like 'Poseidon,' then...

It is only natural that her inner weakness and struggle would make her a 'weak and imprisoned god of wisdom with only a breath left'.

The name of the Huaye also has another special identifier - Judas.

What about the colorful flower that calls itself 'Athena'?

It should also correspond to 'Judas'.

Judas was a 'traitor who betrayed the Lord'.

But even traitors have moments of regret.

After betraying the Lord, Judas felt guilty and knew she was guilty but could not atone for it. She prayed to the Lord she had betrayed for repentance, but all she received in return was the Lord's pitying gaze and words: "For this time I came into the world."

Knowing that pleading was useless, Judas cried out, "It's too late, it's too late!" and hanged himself.

"..."

Amamiya felt that the various mythological systems and related knowledge swirling in her mind were almost becoming a jumbled mess.

However, finding the reflection between the temple and the real world is also an essential part of conquering the temple.

Rubbing her temples to gather her thoughts, Amamiya asked the most crucial question: "How are you going to help us?"

'Athena' was prepared.

She parted her lips slightly, offering a seemingly ambiguous answer: "Plant olive trees on the 'blood field,' and everything will become clear."

Not far behind Amamiya, the group of girls who were traveling with her looked at each other in bewilderment.

What on earth is going on here?

Is this still human language?

I can understand each sentence individually, but when put together, I can't figure out what they all mean.

Under the watchful eyes of the girls, some nervous, some confused, some doubtful, and some curious, 'Athena' removed the wreath made of olive branches from her head.

Then, he threw it to Amamiya.

Amamiya reached out and took it; the railing wreath melted into a ball of light, which then condensed into a tiny seed.

This is... a treasure.

Navi's keen perception made Fubuki immediately realize that this tiny seed must be the 'high-value treasure' she had searched for through her Persona's perception.

After leaving behind this 'seed', Athena's damaged body returned to normal.

The halo above his head gradually faded from its dark color, disappeared, and eventually returned to its original state.

When Amamiya used his "Third Eye" to check again, the information he saw had changed.

[Cognitive Existence: Goddess of Wisdom, Shiranui, Olive Branch, Athena, Hanaya]

[Initial Level: 1]

【Arcana: Justice (XI.Justice)】

[Prototype Introduction: The goddess of wisdom and war, the true protector of Athens. However, at this time, the goddess of wisdom was controlled and imprisoned by Poseidon, who was draining her power. Therefore, she was extremely weak.]

The goddess of wisdom of yesteryear is now a prisoner of this so-called "private divine kingdom."

'Initial level 1...'

Well, in a strange world overrun by demons and monsters, this is the kind of thing that would 'scatter with a gust of wind'.

Apart from his own initial persona, Arsène, Amamiya had never seen a Shadow of such a low initial level.

Well, perhaps some senior who was imprisoned on the moon has seen a level 1 Athena.

"Who are you...?"

Athena, who seemed to have just awakened, was unaware of what had happened and looked at Amamiya with a blank expression.

Her reaction relieved the group of girls behind Amamiya.

That uncomfortable feeling of listening to the shadows speak has returned.

This also means that the strange 'Athena' has completely left...

"We are outsiders who have come to investigate this 'private divine kingdom.'"

After carefully collecting the seeds that the olive branch had transformed into, Amamiya asked naturally, "Why are you imprisoned here?"

"I……"

Athena opened her mouth slightly, as if to say something, but was suddenly drawn to the aura naturally emanating from the masked envoys.

"..."

After a slight hesitation, she changed her address to: "Heroes, sirs."

"I am the former guardian of this city-state, imprisoned here."

"A savage sea god from the deep sea has invaded this place and imprisoned me, causing me to lose all my power."

"This city-state is on the verge of collapse... I must reclaim the power of the guardian deity."

"Would you be willing to become my 'Odysseus' and drive away that sea god?"

Chapter Thirty-Two: Do ​​You Believe in Religion?

when--

As the sacred chimes echoed and reverberated, the group leaving the Parthenon heard the second chime.

Along with this came a voice filled with fanaticism beneath a vehement belief.

"Do you want us to command the sacred fire to descend from heaven and burn them?"

The bells... have started ringing again.

The group of girls accompanying them had heard this bell for the second time. It sounded like it was cleansing their souls, but in reality, it made their hearts and lungs stop.

"Hey...Athena."

They all stopped in place, waiting for the bell to completely disappear. Aru, whose eardrums were still sore from the shock, shook her head to clear the strange sound from her mind. She looked at the 'Goddess of Wisdom' beside her, who was holding a small shield and a spear, dressed in light armor, looking heroic yet weak.

"...What exactly is going on with this bell sound?"

"...It must be the announcement made when the 'Sea God,' who intends to advance further, successfully selects his own apostle."

According to legend, there were twelve apostles who sought the Lord.

"And what we heard was the second chime."

"Once the selection of apostles is complete, that 'Sea God' will probably try to ascend to a higher position."

Symbolizing 'wisdom', it must always be associated with riddle tellers—and even Faye is no exception.

Alu didn't quite understand and blinked, about to ask again.

Before she could speak, Amamiya coughed lightly to draw attention and explained in plain language: "I won't go into the specific mythological prototypes, as they're not that important to you for now... Just think of the bell ringing as a progress bar."

"After the 12 chimes, the temple of Huaye is likely to undergo further changes."

Amamiya's explanation only instilled a sense of urgency in the girls.

After roughly estimating the time interval between this bell ringing and the previous one, Fubuki frowned slightly and asked incredulously, "But the interval between this bell ringing and the last one is very short... In such a short time, do we really need to explore the entire hall in one go?!"

As a 'slacker' in Valkyrie, Fubuki has become accustomed to the steady pace of progress.

Telling her suddenly that this hall needs to be 'speeded through' was indeed a bit abrupt.

The answer to this question came from Athena, who led the way.

"If you heroes do not have enough time to explore... there is no need to worry too much."

"I have been trapped in the temple for a long time. I have heard these annoying bells more than a dozen times before the arrival of you heroes."

"But the number of times is not related to the number of times the bell rings—even if the second bell rings repeatedly several times, it will not become the third bell."

It sounds a bit convoluted, but everyone understood it.

It means that it wasn't just a single sound.

Instead, the number of chimes is determined by the frenzied, devout prayers that accompany the chimes.

But... where do these prayers that appear with each chime of the bell come from?

Perhaps only the Sisters of Holy Trinity here would recognize the source.

But if Trinity students are here, won't they be 'misled'?

Thinking about this question, Yuriko quietly checked the composition of the team.

If you were to ask the members of this makeshift 'phantom thief group' the same question: "Are you religious?"

So almost all the members would answer 'I don't believe it'.

His own persona is that of a philosopher who revives the arts, while his teammates' personas include a black cat from a fairy tale, a phantom thief from a legend of a phantom thief, a cowboy from the Wild West, and an assistant who accompanies the great detective.

None of them could even remotely relate to true 'theology'.

Personas... or rather, the entire field of mysticism, emphasizes a relationship of restraint.